Minnatullah Rahmani (7 April 1913 – 20 March 1991) was an Indian Sunni Muslim scholar who served as the first General Secretary of
All India Muslim Personal Law Board
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) is a non-government organisation constituted in 1973 by that time Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi to adopt suitable strategies for the protection and continued applicability of Muslim Personal ...
. He was an alumnus of
Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama
Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama (translated as, House of Knowledge and Assembly of Scholars University) is an Islamic seminary in Lucknow, India. It was established by the Nadwatul Ulama, a council of Muslim scholars, on 26 September 1898.
This edu ...
and
Darul Uloom Deoband
The Darul Uloom Deoband is an Islamic seminary (darul uloom) in India at which the Sunni Deobandi Islamic movement began. It is located in Deoband, a town in Saharanpur district, Uttar Pradesh. The seminary was established by Muhammad Qasim ...
, and a member of
Bihar Legislative Assembly
The Bihar Legislative Assembly, also known as the Bihar Vidhan Sabha, is the lower house of the Bihar Legislature where the first elections were held in 1952.
The total strength of membership in the Assembly was 331, including one nominated m ...
. He also served as the General Secretary of the
Jamiat Ulama Bihar. His father
Muhammad Ali Mungeri
Muḥammad Ali Mungeri (28 July 1846 – 13 September 1927) was an Indian Muslim scholar who was the founder Nadwatul Ulama and first chancellor of its Darul Uloom, a major Islamic seminary in Lucknow. He extensively wrote against Christianity a ...
was the founder of
Nadwatul Ulama
Nadwatul Ulama is a council of Muslim theologians in India which was formed in 1893 in Kanpur. The first manager of the council was Muhammad Ali Mungeri and the incumbent is Rabey Hasani Nadwi. The council established the Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ul ...
and his son
Wali Rahmani
Wali Rahmani (5 June 1943 – 3 April 2021) was an Indian Sunni Islamic scholar and academician who founded Rahmani30. He was a member of the Bihar Legislative Council from 1974 to 1996. He served as the general secretary of the All India Muslim ...
established the
Rahmani30
Rahmani30 is an Indian educational movement that was started in Patna, Bihar, India under the banner of 'Rahmani Program of Excellence', by Hazrat Wali Rahmani Sahab with Abhayanand Ji former DGP Bihar as the academic head. It is modelled afte ...
institute.
Biography
Minnatullah Rahmani was born in
Munger
Munger, formerly spelt as Monghyr, is a twin city and a Municipal Corporation situated in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the administrative headquarters of Munger district and Munger Division. Munger was one of the major cities in Eastern In ...
on 7 April 1913. His father
Muhammad Ali Mungeri
Muḥammad Ali Mungeri (28 July 1846 – 13 September 1927) was an Indian Muslim scholar who was the founder Nadwatul Ulama and first chancellor of its Darul Uloom, a major Islamic seminary in Lucknow. He extensively wrote against Christianity a ...
was a founding figure of the
Nadwatul Ulama
Nadwatul Ulama is a council of Muslim theologians in India which was formed in 1893 in Kanpur. The first manager of the council was Muhammad Ali Mungeri and the incumbent is Rabey Hasani Nadwi. The council established the Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ul ...
in
Lucknow
Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...
.
Rahmani received his primary education in Munger and went to
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
, where he studied Arabic grammar, syntax and logic with Mufti Abd al-Lateef. He enrolled at the
Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama
Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama (translated as, House of Knowledge and Assembly of Scholars University) is an Islamic seminary in Lucknow, India. It was established by the Nadwatul Ulama, a council of Muslim scholars, on 26 September 1898.
This edu ...
and studied there for four years. In 1349
AH, he moved to
Darul Uloom Deoband
The Darul Uloom Deoband is an Islamic seminary (darul uloom) in India at which the Sunni Deobandi Islamic movement began. It is located in Deoband, a town in Saharanpur district, Uttar Pradesh. The seminary was established by Muhammad Qasim ...
, where he studied ''
Sahih Bukhari
Sahih al-Bukhari ( ar, صحيح البخاري, translit=Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī), group=note is a ''hadith'' collection and a book of '' sunnah'' compiled by the Persian scholar Muḥammad ibn Ismā‘īl al-Bukhārī (810–870) around 846. Al ...
'' with
Hussain Ahmad Madani
Hussain Ahmad Madani (6 October 1879 – 5 December 1957) was an Indian Islamic scholar, serving as the principal of Darul Uloom Deoband. He was among the first recipients of the civilian honour of Padma Bhushan in 1954. and graduated from there in 1352 AH.
His other teachers included
Asghar Hussain Deobandi and
Muhammad Shafi Usmani
Muḥammad Shafī‘ ibn Muḥammad Yāsīn ‘Us̱mānī Deobandī ( ur, ; ar, محمد شفيع بن محمد ياسين العثماني الديوبندي, ''Muḥammad Shafī‘ ibn Muḥammad Yāsīn al-‘Uthmānī ad-Diyūbandī''; ...
.
In 1935, Rahmani was appointed the General Secretary of the
Jamiat Ulama Bihar.
Abul Muhasin Muhammad Sajjad
Abul Muhasin Muhammad Sajjad (1880 – 23 November 1940) was an Indian Islamic scholar who was one of the most influential ulemas of the 20th century. Sajjad was a founder of Anjuman-Ulama-i-Bihar, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, and Imarat-i-Sharia. A lea ...
founded the
Muslim Independent Party
The Muslim Independent Party was a political party founded in India in 1935 by Abul Muhasin Muhammad Sajjad.
History
The party was founded in 1935 by Abul Muhasin Muhammad Sajjad, the Amir of Imarat-e-Sharia, Bihar, to represent Muslims in Bihar ...
in 1935 and Rahmani was appointed as its member. Through it, he was elected as a member of
Bihar Legislative Assembly
The Bihar Legislative Assembly, also known as the Bihar Vidhan Sabha, is the lower house of the Bihar Legislature where the first elections were held in 1952.
The total strength of membership in the Assembly was 331, including one nominated m ...
in 1937. He was appointed as the
Sajjada Nashin
The ''Sajjāda nashīn'' ( fa, سجاده نشین; lit. "ne whosits t aprayer mat") is a term of Persian origin, used chiefly within the Sufi traditions of South Asia referring to the successor or hereditary administrator of a Sufi master who t ...
of Khanqah-e-Rahmani, Munger in 1361 AH and a member of the executive council of Darul Uloom Deoband in 1955, a post he served until his death.
Alongside
Muhammad Tayyib Qasmi
Muhammad Tayyib Qasmi (known as Qari Muhammad Tayyib) was an Indian Sunni Islamic scholar who served as Vice Chancellor of Darul Uloom Deoband for more than half a century. He was grandson of Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi, the founder of the Darul ...
, he played a key role in establishing the
All India Muslim Personal Law Board
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) is a non-government organisation constituted in 1973 by that time Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi to adopt suitable strategies for the protection and continued applicability of Muslim Personal ...
and was appointed its first General Secretary on 28 December 1972, in the inception meeting. In 1964, he participated in the
World Muslim Congress
The World Muslim Congress (''Motamar al-Alam al-Islami'') (Arabic: مؤتمر العالم الإسلامي) is an Islamic organization based in Karachi. Its co-founder and Secretary-General for over four decades was Inamullah Khan. It was the ...
as a delegate of India.
In 1945, Rahmani re-established the Jamia Rahmania, a well known
madrassa
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , pl. , ) is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated '' ...
in
Munger
Munger, formerly spelt as Monghyr, is a twin city and a Municipal Corporation situated in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the administrative headquarters of Munger district and Munger Division. Munger was one of the major cities in Eastern In ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
.
He died on 20 March 1991.
Legacy
Rahmani's son
Wali Rahmani
Wali Rahmani (5 June 1943 – 3 April 2021) was an Indian Sunni Islamic scholar and academician who founded Rahmani30. He was a member of the Bihar Legislative Council from 1974 to 1996. He served as the general secretary of the All India Muslim ...
established the
Rahmani30
Rahmani30 is an Indian educational movement that was started in Patna, Bihar, India under the banner of 'Rahmani Program of Excellence', by Hazrat Wali Rahmani Sahab with Abhayanand Ji former DGP Bihar as the academic head. It is modelled afte ...
and formerly served as the general secretary of the
All India Muslim Personal Law Board
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) is a non-government organisation constituted in 1973 by that time Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi to adopt suitable strategies for the protection and continued applicability of Muslim Personal ...
.
Shah Imran Hasan wrote his biography ''Hayat-e Rahmani: Maulana Minnatullah Rahmani ki Zindagi ka Ilmi aur Tarikhi Mutala’a'' ( en, The Life of Rahmani: A Study of Maulana Minatullah Rahmani’s Scholarly and Historical Legacy) which has a foreword from
Akhtarul Wasey
Akhtarul Wasey (born 1 September 1951) is the president of Maulana Azad University, Jodhpur, India, and a former professor of Islamic Studies. He taught at Jamia Millia Islamia (Central University) in New Delhi, where he remains professor emer ...
.
References
Bibliography
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rahmani, Minnatullah
1913 births
1991 deaths
People from Munger district
Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama alumni
Darul Uloom Deoband alumni
Deobandis